1. Field of the Invention
Exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to a liquid crystal display.
2. Discussion of the Background
A liquid crystal display (LCD) is one of the most widely used flat panel displays (FPD), and is composed of two display panels on which field generating electrodes, such as pixel electrodes and a common electrode, are formed with a liquid crystal layer interposed between the two display panels. In a liquid crystal display, voltages are applied to field generating electrodes in order to generate an electric field over the liquid crystal layer. The electrical field determines the alignment of liquid crystal molecules of the liquid crystal layer. Accordingly, the polarization of incident light is controlled, thereby performing image display.
The LCD also includes switching elements connected to the respective pixel electrodes, and a plurality of signal lines, such as gate lines and data lines, for controlling the switching elements and applying voltages to the pixel electrodes.
Among the LCDs, a vertical alignment (VA) mode LCD, which aligns liquid crystal (LC) molecules, such that their long axes are perpendicular to the panels in the absence of an electric field, is spotlighted because of its high contrast ratio and wide reference viewing angle.
The wide viewing angle of a VA mode LCD can be realized by cutouts in the field-generating electrodes and protrusions on the field-generating electrodes. Since the cutouts and the protrusions can determine the tilt directions of the LC molecules, the tilt directions can be distributed in several directions by using the cutouts and the protrusions such that the reference viewing angle is widened.
Here, the liquid crystal molecules disposed close to the protrusions or the cutouts are strongly controlled, however the influence of the protrusions or the cutouts is weak on the liquid crystal molecules disposed away from the protrusions.
Particularly, the electric field's effect is weak on the liquid crystal molecules disposed inside the cutout such that they are inclined into various directions such that the liquid crystal molecules collide with each other, and as a result, they are irregularly and unstably arranged.